ON THE CAMPAIGN TRAIL
Hillary Clinton participates in the Democratic Candidates Debate on January 17, 2016 in Charleston, South Carolina. Photo by Andrew Burton/Getty Images
Donald Trump arrives at the USA Thank You Tour 2016 at the Wisconsin State Fair Exposition Center December 13, 2016 in West Allis, Wisconsin. Don Emmert/AFP/Getty Images
CAMPAIGN MERCH
Tee-shirts supporting either US Republican presidential nominees at Philadelphia International Airport on October 20, 2016 . Photo by Robyn Beck/AFP/Getty Images
As the campaign raged on, it seemed the presidential candidates couldn't say anything without it being turned into a wearable product. After Hillary referred to Trump supporters as a "basket of deplorables" during her speech at a LGBTQ gala, the slogan "Deplorables for Trump" was printed on a T-shirt. When Trump called Clinton a "nasty woman" during the final debate, merch with the viral comment flooded sites like Etsy and Amazon.While politicized clothing was being embraced by those wanting to showcase their support, it was also making them targets. A 22-year-old Home Depot employee received death threats for wearing an "America Was Never Great" hat and a nine-year-old was banned from wearing his signed "Make America Great Again" hat to school because it was attracting negative attention from other students.A 22-year-old Home Depot employee received death threats for wearing an "America Was Never Great" hat and a nine-year-old was banned from wearing his signed "Make America Great Again" hat to school because it was attracting negative attention.
THE FASHION INDUSTRY
A model walks the runway at Namilia fashion show during New York Fashion Week. Photo by Neilson Barnard/Getty Images for New York Fashion Week: The Shows
Photo courtesy of Pyer Moss/Chapter 2
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There's no telling how essential fashion and style will be to our political discourse as we enter the Trump era in 2017. But considering Trump's daughter Ivanka is emailing "style alerts" to her followers after interviews with 60 Minutes to hawk expensive style accessories, and men's fashion icon Kanye West is kissing up to the president-elect at the Trump Towers, it seems like we're headed for another year where our style is fueled by unprecedented nature of our politics.Follow Erica on Twitter.